Only Time Will Tell
by hiddenwriter691
Summary: Takes place a little over 9 years after POTC 3. Young Jackie wants nothing more than to be a pirate like her parents. But who is Jackie's father? Why, none other than the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow.
1. Swaggering

Disclaimer: I own no POTC characters. It's all Disney's and their writers...you know. There are a few original characters (the ones you don't recognize!)

Chapter 1- Swaggering

I walked through Tortuga Island with a slight swagger. I wasn't drunk, after all I'm not that old. Truthfully, I've only had one glass of rum in my life, and it was disgusting. You won't catch me telling that to anyone though.

My mother decided to stay in Haiti for a while, and I hated that island, so I left. I knew that she would be worried, but I also know that I can take care of myself. She knows that too.

I hoped to find one person, one man, one pirate while I was here. He's fairly famous among the buccaneers and infamous among the East India Trading Company. I knew that at least someone would have heard of him here in Tortuga.

I saw the Faithful Bride up ahead. You could find every low life, scallywag, buccaneer, or just plain drunkard in this tavern. I had only been here once before, when I was eight. My mother and I had been passing through, on the way to Bermuda.

I knew I would stick out in this rough tavern. Young people like me weren't exactly safe in places like this. But I had to look the part. So my swagger wasn't a drunken one, but a haughty, self important one. I strode through the front door of the tavern with my hand on my sword.

My clothes definitely did not stand out. I wore a dirt sodden tunic with dirty brown breeches. My belt on my waist held up my breeches which were way too big. My shoes were beaten-to-a-pulp leather, but comfortable all the same. I wore a hat on my head. It was dark black and had three points to it. It was way too big, but I would never take it off because of the man who gave it to me. My hair was well hidden under my hat.

There was a fight going on to my left. I heard something about a six pence and a thief. I avoided that at all costs. I walked up to the bar and sat on a stool. The bartender was talking with someone to my right. He was a fat man, with a small knife at his side.

He walked over to peer at me. "'ow old are you laddy?" He asked me, his breath not alcoholic.

"I'm ten," I said, peering back courageously.

He laughed. "What brings you to the Faithful Bride?"

"I'm searchin' for some'un," I said.

"I'm thinkin' that yer mother isn't here."

"I'm thinkin' that I left my mother back in Haiti."

The bartender looked thoroughly amused by my attempt.

"Who're you searchin' fer?" He asked.

"Cap'n Jack Sparrow," I said.

The bartender's eyes widened before he laughed, long and hard. I sat and watched the hideous sight of the man laughing. Spit flew everywhere. I just stared. He was soiling my hat with spit, I guessed.

The laughing attracted the attention of another scallywag in the bar. He meandered over and sat next to me. "What's the hubbub, Al?"

"This lil' laddy wants to find Jack."

"Jack who?" the scallywag asked.

"Sparrow, mate."

The bartender continued to laugh. The other man, the scallywag, just glared at me. "What're you wantin' with Jack, boy?"

"I just wanna meet him, mostly. I'd like to be a pirate, actually," I said, looking down.

The bartender laughed more. I was embarrassed now, and a pirate should never be embarrassed. I didn't feel worthy of the name pirate, a rare thing for me. I was ripped out of my misery as I was suddenly jerked out of my chair.

I saw grubby hands around my waist and I felt a cold metal object against my neck. My heart involuntarily sped up. I saw my hat fall from my head to the ground. "Hand over me money, you scoundrel, or I'll kill your young lad here!" The grubby man yelled to the scallywag.

"He's not my lad, kill 'im for all I care," the scallywag said, impassively.

"Wait a minute. It ain't a lad," the grubby man said, releasing me like I was toxic.

I knew that as soon as my hat fell I was in deep trouble. My long, dark hair was French braided and pulled up into my hat. Now, it most certainly wasn't. "It's a lady!" A skinny idiot yelled from my left.

"It's a young lady. Who wants to find Sparrow? What's yer name, lass?" The scallywag asked me.

"It's Jacqueline. I go by Jackie," I said, glaring.

"Surname, child?" the scallywag asked.

"My mother's a pirate. That's all'at matters," I said, avoiding the question.

"Unlikely," the bartender coughed.

"There are some woman pirates and you know it!" I yelled, grabbing my hat and pulling my hair back into it.

"Ye don't dress like a lady. Or act like one."

"You bastards can just shove it, alright. If you don' know where Jack is then I'm gone," I said, turning to leave.

I heard one of the men behind me whisper, "She don't talk like a lady either."

I left the Faithful Bride, certainly unhappy. Not one of those men were about to tell me where Jack was. As I left, I saw a younger woman in the corner staring at me. I nodded kindly at her. Woman to woman.

She smiled and I felt a little better.

I walked out of the good for nothing tavern. I realized how horrible it smelled when I finally was out of it. I began swaggering through Tortuga, thinking about what to do next. I was about to turn when an arm turned me.

It was the scallywag. He was of a larger weight, with a beard and soiled clothing. "Eh, lass, what you be wantin' with my mate Jack?"

"You know him?" I asked.

"Aye, I know 'im. Known 'im fer years. It's no' exactly common for young lasses to seek him. At least, ones as young as you. Normally older lasses're seeking him in hopes of slapping him a good 'un. Normally, 'e deserves it, too…"

"I just wann'er meet 'im. Like I said, me mum's a pirate. She knew 'im once. She said that 'e was a good man but tricky. That 'e was a good pirate but placed his trust in bad places. Yet, he weren't trustworthy 'imself," I told the man.

The scallywag nodded. "Jack is an in'eresting character. I'd trust 'im with me life though. Bu' tell me, whose yer mother?"

I shook my head. I wasn't going to tell him. "It don' matter."

"Well, lets just say I know where Jack is. How're you plannin' on gettin' to 'im?"

"I…I don' know."

"And what'll you do when you get there?"

"I dunno," I said, dejected. I really had no clue what I was doing. I just really wanted to meet Jack. I had to find him. So I set out to find where he was. I didn't really think about what I would do afterwards.

"Ah lass, what'd'ya want with Jack, of all pirates?" The man asked me kindly.

This was an easy question. "He's a pirate lord! Who else would I wanna meet?!"

"You really wanna be a pirate, don't you?" The man said smiling.

"Aye, sir!"

"Well, I'll tell you wha'. I'm going to Port Royal on some business. Why don' you sail with my crew? It's a short sailing and a small crew. Perfect for a young pirate. From there on out, we'll see."

Why was he doing this? I didn't know pirates to be kind or helpful. I eyed him. "Why're you offerin' this? I'm only ten."

"All pirates start somewhere, don't they? Plus, I think there's more to yer story than yer leadin' on. I'd like to find out what it is."

I nodded. He was nosey, a pirate's trait. "Wha' about the myth that sailin' with a woman is ba' luck?"

The man tapped my hat with his hand. "Just keep that hat there. You look like a lad that way. Actually, you remind me a lot of Jack when he was young."

I grinned. I would be a pirate. If it was the last thing I did, I would be a pirate. Just like my parents.


	2. Port Royal, Elizabeth, and Jack

Disclaimer- I own nothing and never claimed to own it. I just play with it. Haha. So Disney owns what you know. I am responsible for all of the other junk.

Chapter 2- Port Royal, Elizabeth, and Jack

I swung around the mast happily. Port Royal was in view. The huge British ships that were our enemies were intimidating next to our tiny boat. I knew we were sneaking in and believed that we would get in fine.

I ran about the ship, doing all that my captain had ordered of me. I was very, very thankful to have been given this chance and wished to show him that.

I found my captain was an odd man. I wondered what brought him to Port Royal, but knew I probably wouldn't find out.

We landed on a small port in a disreputable part of the city. It had never been rebuilt after the attack of the Black Pearl by Captain Barbossa. At least, not by the Brits. The pirates had rebuilt a semblance of the town with washed up pieces of wood. When we unloaded from the ship, the _Anna-Maria_, the men went to the tavern.

My captain didn't, however, and I decided to follow him. "Where're you off to, cap'n? If I may ask?"

The captain didn't seem at all annoyed that I had followed him. "Aye, I'm glad you followed. I wish for you to meet a friend of mine. More so, she's Jack's friend."

"Is she a pirate?" I asked, curious. It was kind of rare to meet a woman pirate, like my mother.

"Aye, more'n that. But I'll let her explain it all to ye."

"What'd'ya mean?"

"Well, she's married to a pirate. And she was…well, Elizabeth is great at telling' 'er stories. So I'll let her tell ye."

"Elizabeth, you say? Elizabeth, who?" I asked. I knew of a lot of pirates. Maybe I would've heard of her.

"Liz Turner."

"As in, Bootstrap Bill Turner?!"

"Aye, it's old Bootstrap's daughter-in-law."

I screeched in excitement. Everyone heard of Bootstrap. Somehow, he came back to life, so I heard. Or he never actually died. Before Bootstrap went to Davy Jones' Locker, he made a deal with Jones. Bootstrap gave up his soul so that he could be immortal. So Bootstrap had to serve with Jones for an eternity.

But nine years ago, something happened. The captain of the Flying Dutchman was killed. And the Dutchman always has to have a captain. Thus, there was a new captain. Who it was, not many knew. I didn't know.

My captain and I walked out of the messy parts of Port Royal. Even though we were messy, we didn't even stick out in the rebuilt parts of the town. Commoners were still just that, common. Half of the commoners were just as messy as a pirate. As we meandered through the town, I decided to talk.

"Cap'n, do you know who's the captain of the _The Dutchman_?" I asked.

He glanced over to me. "Aye, I do. He is a good man, great pirate."

I was surprised. "If he is good, why is he captain of the _Dutchman_?"

"The Dutchman ain't the horror it used to be, lass. It takes care of the souls of those who die at sea. Really though, the captain didn't have much of a choice in the matter."

"Oh," I said, "but surely you have a choice?"

"Unfortunately, he didn't."

"Oh. So he's been captain for nine years?"

"Aye."

"But what--" He cut me off.

"Lass, trust me, Miz Turner can explain it better'n I can."

I nodded. We began to walk out of the common part of town. My heart skipped a beat. I rubbed my right arm subconsciously. "Will we be safe here? There'll be a lot of Brits about…"

"No worries, we won't go that far in. Liz is expectin' me."

So we walked through more cobblestone streets. It was getting cleaner as we traveled so I was getting anxious. I didn't want to be caught. It was no secret that even young pirates could be hung. Under my breath, I sang the song of the brethren. It always comforted me. My captain glanced at me. "Calm down. No need to be singin' tha' song."

I just kept humming. "Look lass, there's our destination."

I looked up to see a very nice home. If we go in, it'll be the biggest place I've ever entered. It was three stories and painted white. Even though it was big and nice, it looked a little musty and unkempt.

I saw a young boy playing in the yard. He didn't look much younger than me, actually. He had dark brown hair to his shoulders. That was all I could see of him though because he was hunched over, playing in the dirt.

We walked past the boy, who didn't even look up. My captain knocked on the door. It wasn't long until a woman opened the door. She was very pretty. Her eyes were a light brown and her hair matched. Her skin looked soft and not like a pirate at all. She was one of the cleanest people I've ever seen.

"Gibbs!" She smiled, extending a hand to him.

He took her soft hand in his rough dirty one. Elizabeth didn't even seem to notice the grime. "You're noticeably happier than the last time I saw you."

Elizabeth smiled. "It's been nine years, you know. One more!"

Her eyes danced with happiness, and I wondered what was so happy.

"Jack's getting big. I think last time I saw him, he was two feet tall."

Elizabeth smiled again, just as happy. "He looks more like his father everyday. Jack! Do you remember Mr. Gibbs?"

The little boy hopped up from the yard. I noticed that he was dressed rather like a pirate, a clean pirate though. His eyes were really big and dark brown, darker than his mother's. He walked over and stood facing me. He was only a few inches shorter. "Who're you?" He asked me.

I cocked my head. "My name's Jackie."

He grinned, revealing missing teeth. "I'm Jack. William Jack Turner." He extended a hand. I shook it.

"Gibbs, who's this boy?" Elizabeth asked, indicating me.

"Ah, Liz, things aren't always as they seem are they? Jackie take of yer hat."

I reluctantly did as I was told. I felt my heavy braid fall down my back. Elizabeth saw my long hair and raised an eyebrow. "Gibbs, last time I checked it was 'mighty bad luck to bring a woman aboard.'" Elizabeth said, smiling.

Gibbs smiled. "That was before I met you."

Elizabeth shook her head. "Come on in."

We all entered a very nice, but dusty room. Elizabeth turned to Gibbs and asked, "Gibbs, would you like to wash?"

Gibbs visibly shivered. "No thanks, Miz Turner. I'll take a swim in the ocean."

She turned to me and knelt to be and my level. "What about you, Jackie?"

I shrugged, replacing my hat. "I've never really, other'n the ocean." I wondered if this clean woman would be repulsed. But she surprised me.

Elizabeth smiled. "How old are you?"

"Ten." I said, and countered, "How old'r you?"

"Ha. I like you Jackie."

"I'm eight and a half!" Jack yelled in my ear.

I saw Gibbs watching the exchange and glancing at Elizabeth. He wanted to talk to her and she noticed. "Wait a minute, Jackie. I think I need to talk to Gibbs. Why don't you and Jack play?"

I nodded. Jack smiled. "You know, all the kids here don't like me."

"Why?" I asked.

"'Cause my mum's a pirate. And my father's a pirate. And I wanna be a pirate."

"Me too."

"Really?! I think my mum wants me to be a pirate, but she also doesn't want me to be one. She worries about me and my dad all the time."

"Where's your dad?" I asked.

Jack shrugged and looked away. "My mum tells me he'll be back next year."

"That's good."

He shrugged again. "I've never met him," he said, sadly.

I smiled. Not because it was happy. "I think you and I could be good friends, Jack Turner."

"Why?" He asked.

"I've never met me father, either."

Jack smiled. "So we both wanna be pirates and never met our fathers!" He said.

I nodded. "You wanna be my first mate?" I asked, grinning.

"Why can't I be captain?"

"Because I'm older, I've got more experience. I'll be Cap'n Jackie. You be First Mate Jack. Even our names sound alike."

"Okay, you can be captain. D'ya know what Gibbs always says with Captain Sparrow?"

My eyes widened. "_You_ know Cap'n Jack?!"

"Well, I've never met him, actually. But, Gibbs has told me about him. He and Sparrow have been mates for ages. They always say, 'Take what you can'--" I cut off the young Jack.

"'give nothin' back.'" I finished. "My mum knew Jack," I explained.

"So did mine," Jack said. "Actually, she named me after him."

"That's brilliant," I said, smiling.

Jack grinned at me. "Take what you can," Jack offered me his fist.

I hit his fist with mine. "Give nothin' back!" I nodded. "I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship."


	3. Aqua De Vita

Disclaimer- I don't own it!

Chapter 3- Aqua De Vita

Elizabeth left her son with the young girl. She looked like a pirate. She had been sailing with Gibbs and she was dirty. It didn't take a lot to figure it out.

She walked over to Gibbs. He was grinning. "How're you Liz?"

"Better, compared to the last nine years."

"Aye. Well, I got word from Jack two weeks back."

Elizabeth perked up looking at him. "Aye?"

Gibbs nodded. "You know, Barbossa got caught by your crew two years ago."

Elizabeth shook her head. "They aren't my crew anymore. I gave command to Sao Fang's first mate when I found out about little Jack. You know that."

"Yes, but still. They got hold of the _Black Pearl_. Jack freed the men from Singapore, even if they committed mutiny against him. They set out to find the Aqua De Vita… He asked me to follow up, be his first mate."

"What about Barbossa?"

"He's still a Pirate Lord. But he makes birth at Singapore now, with his ship the _Sao Fang_. It was modeled after the _Pearl_, while the men there had her. I don't know its abilities. But I know the abilities of its Captain. If the _Fang_ is as fast as the _Pearl_, Jack'll have some kind of trouble loosing him. He could use his best mate. His best mates," Gibbs said, raising his eyebrows.

Elizabeth caught on immediately. "Gibbs! I've got a son! Will will be back in nine months!"

"Yes! But Lizzie, tell me you aren't achin' for the sea. You've turned tinto a pirate, Miz Turner. I've seen it in yer eyes. When yer on the sea, you become yerself. Look at this place, I've seen you keep the _Pearl_ cleaner'n this."

Elizabeth nodded, looking at her unkempt house. It wasn't that she didn't care. She just actually was more comfortable in a changing environment. She didn't like to be in one place for too long. She had been in Jamaica for seven years straight now, almost never leaving Port Royal.

"When're you leaving?" She asked.

"I'm going back to Tortuga in a week. Jack will be there in two weeks time. Will you be joining me?"

Elizabeth looked to her son, who was talking with the young girl. He looked very happy to be talking to someone his age. Jack was so lonely here. Her and Jack were outsiders.

Back when she returned to Port Royal, some British generals who had found out about her last name told her that she could pretend to not be married to the infamous Will Turner.

They said she could stay Elizabeth Swann and Jack could be William Jack Swann. Then they could pretend like Elizabeth never married a pirate or was one herself. But she refused. Thus, her and Jack were rejected. They weren't hung, which Elizabeth knew they were lucky for. But they weren't part of society either.

So Jack's only friend, only companion was his mother. Somehow, Elizabeth knew that Jack would be okay on a pirate ship. He would survive. He had his father's reflexes and his instincts.

But every part of her wanted to keep him out of the way of danger. She could never count how many times she had a sword at her throat or aimed at her gut. She knew if Jack went the way of a pirate, he would have enemies. She shivered.

That seemed unavoidable though. He would never mesh with society. He was William Jack Turner, son of the pirates Elizabeth and William Turner. He would become a pirate; he wanted it.

Elizabeth looked at Gibbs. She wanted her son to talk with someone other than her. "Gibbs, I'll go with you."

Gibbs smiled. "Aye!"

Elizabeth sighed. "If I miss the green flash, I'll kill you."

Gibbs nodded. "Aye."

The two pirates both gazed at the two young ones. They were knocking fists together like Sparrow and Gibbs often did. "Listen, Miz Turner, could that little lass stay with you until we leave."

Elizabeth turned to Gibbs. "Why is she with you? Who _is _she?"

He shook his head. "I don't even know. 'er name's Jacqueline, Jackie for short. 'er mother's in Haiti, I think. Mother was a pirate, according to Jackie. That's all I know." Gibbs smiled a little. "I met her in the Faithful Bride. Little lass marched in there wantin' to find Cap'n Jack Sparrow. Threw a darn near fit when they laughed at 'er. I followed 'er out and offered her a place on my ship. She wants to be a pirate."

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "I don't understand. _Why_ did you do it? That's not like you."

"She's feisty and witty. A damn hard worker too. I suppose she reminds me of Jack a little…People fear the pirate race is ending. I guess seeing a young person so anxious to be a pirate gives me hope."

Elizabeth nodded. "I understand that."

"So can she stay?" Gibbs asked. "I'm not tryin' ter get rid of her or anythin'. I jus' don't want her stayin' with the men. I mean, they don' know she's a girl. As you said, bad luck," Gibbs laughed. "But really, a ten year old amongst hardened sailors…"

Elizabeth nodded. "I could do with female company," she laughed. "And Jack could do with _any_ company."

"He'll have plenty company in a few weeks."

Elizabeth sighed as Gibbs left. He was eager for a jug of rum.


	4. Bonding

I don't own it. I never did.

Chapter 4- Bonding

Elizabeth joined Jack and I just as we started talking about how we would get our first ship. "Hello, you two," she said.

I saw that Gibbs was gone. "Where did cap'n go?" I asked.

"Mr. Gibbs went back with his men. You'll stay with me." She smiled. "Then in about a week we will all be joining Mr. Gibbs on his ship. Then we're going to the _Black Pearl_ with Jack Sparrow."

"Sparrow?" I asked excitedly.

"Really?" Jack asked, mirroring my excitement.

Elizabeth nodded. "Yes, we'll be sailing with him. Keep in mind, he might not be so kind to you two. Jack's a strange creature. He's pro'ly never had children on his ship. But no worries, you've got me and Gibbs." She closed her eyes laughing. "Jack and I have an odd past, but I doubt he'd sail without me. And I won't sail without you."

We nodded in understanding. "Now, how much have you heard of the Aqua De Vita, Jackie?" She asked me.

"Ponce de Leon found it, supposedly. It's the Water of Life. The Fountain of Youth."

Elizabeth nodded smiling. "It's what we're hunting for."

"What exactly are we doing though, mum? Why does Sparrow need you?" Jack asked.

"Barbossa is after the Aqua De Vita. And he has a ship. Jack needs all the able hands he can get to help him. He also needs people loyal to him. So he needs Gibbs and me. You two will have to be helpful and work hard."

"Aye, aye, mum!" Jack said, placing a hand on his head.

"Aye, Mrs. Turner," I said.

"Call me Elizabeth," she said to me.

"Aye, Elizabeth."

After Will had gone to bed, Elizabeth decided to give me my first bath. "My goodness," she said, "when was the last time you took off these clothes?" She laughed, so she didn't sound mean when she said it.

I shrugged. "My mum got em for me a while back. Pro'ly a month. 'Cause I left a month ago."

Elizabeth frowned. "Does your mum know where you are?"

I didn't know whether to answer or not. "Sort of. She didn't know that I was leavin'. But she would know were I went."

Elizabeth nodded. "You know, if Jack ever disappeared, I would be frantic."

I sighed. "Aye, but she knows where I am or at least where I'm going. Also, me mum's a really…rough pirate I guess. Not cruel. But not, no offense, like you."

Elizabeth laughed. "Yes, I suppose I'm not the roughest pirate."

I climbed into a tub of warmed water. I felt kind of bad. The water was getting dirty. My skin actually got lighter as the dirt lifted off my body. I never really realized how skinny I was beneath my baggy clothing.

"When was the last time you ate something, Jackie?" Elizabeth asked.

I shrugged. "A week since anything really big."

Elizabeth shook her head, murmuring something about "unacceptable."

I smiled. Elizabeth used something she called soap. She washed my body and then my hair. "You have very pretty hair, Jackie."

"Thanks," I said, "My momma has blonde hair and she is always jealous of how dark mine is."

"Does your father have dark hair?" Elizabeth asked. She motioned for me to stand. I got out of the soiled water, feeling exposed without all the dirt and grime.

"I think so. I've never actually met him. But people told me that his hair's dark."

Elizabeth nodded. "So your father's a pirate, too?"

"Yes," I said.

She handed me a tunic, which I slipped on. "Do you know his name?"

"Yes," I said, knowing she would ask more.

Elizabeth grabbed some breeches and gave them to me. "These're Jack's so they might be a little short."

"Thank you," I told her.

"What's his name?" She asked.

I knew full well who she was talking about. "Who?" I asked.

"Your father, Jackie."

I couldn't very well tell her. My mother told me that I wasn't to tell anyone who he was. Number one, because people might not believe me. Number two, because it could put me in danger. And Number three, because my father might not want to believe I exist. "I can't tell," I said.

"Why?" She asked.

"I just can't."

"What's your last name?"

"His."

"Chances are, I won't know him."

"You would."

Elizabeth placed her hands on her hips. "You're a difficult one, aren't you?"

I just shrugged.

"Fine, fine, Jackie. I'll back off." Elizabeth held out her hand for me to take.

She lead me out of the bath-taking room and through a hall. She opened a door that looked like it had been abandoned.

It wasn't luxurious or anything. But it was more than I had ever had.

"This's amazing!"

Elizabeth laughed lightly. "Would you like me to brush your hair?" She asked me.

I wrinkled my eyebrows in confusion. "My hair?"

"Come here," Elizabeth said, smiling.

She sat me on a stool and I saw something I had truly never seen clearly…myself. It was a mirror.

"_That's _what I look like?" I asked. "It looks so much differ'nt in water."

"I suppose it would," Elizabeth said, taking a comb from the dresser and running it through my hair.

My nose was sort of long and my eyes kind of dark. It almost looked like I had some sort of makeup on, even though I didn't. My skin was tanned from so much sun. I kind of looked like a pirate, to my own eye, which made me happy.

"You are very pretty, Jackie," Elizabeth told me, taking one more stroke through my hair with her comb. "It's been so long since I've been around other girls. I haven't brushed someone's hair, other than Jack's, in ages."

"Well, I haven' had my hair brushed since…well, ever," I said, smiling.

Elizabeth tapped my head with her hand. "I really wish you would tell me who your father is."

I frowned, wishing she would forget.

"I'll make'n a deal with ya," I told her. "If you guess right, I'll tell ya so. If you guess wrong, I'll tell ya yer wrong."

Elizabeth smiled. "I will figure this out."

_I hope not,_ I thought.


End file.
